Eco-activist rock musician thinks local, acts global

By Nick Olivari

NEW YORK (Reuters) - It's a long way from rock and roll to eco-activist but Chuck Leavell, most recently keyboardist for The Rolling Stones, believes the two are anything but mutually exclusive.

Leavell, 57, said while the 60's are best known for the music and sexual revolutions, in a smaller but equally important way there was greater recognition that people had to start taking care of the environment.

His most recent incarnation is as a co-founder of The Mother Nature Network, an environmental news and information website that launched in January 2009.

As well as director of environmental affairs and a board member, he hosts two video series on mnn.com: "Love of the Land," in which he discusses sustainability and conservation issues, and "The Green Room," a series in which he interviews fellow celebrities about the environment and their philanthropic work.

"For a long time, Americans were apathetic to these issues, but people are waking up and there is a sincerity to making changes," Leavell said.

Leavell has long lived the environmental creed, with much of his personal commitment stemming from 1981 when his wife, Rose Lane, inherited family land in aptly named Twiggs County, about 100 miles southeast of Atlanta, Georgia.

"I realized I had the responsibility to be a good steward of this land," Leavell said.

BALANCE AND SENSITIVITY